Change or no change…

…in Trinidad?
Your Eyewitness was convinced that voters in the Southern Caribbean were committed to shaking up the incumbent order and changing their regimes. It started in Guyana, when voters decided they’d had enough of the PNC after a disastrous five years when, (in the profound words of Walter Rodney) “everything they touched turned into shit.” If you think the language is coarse, the great man felt that coarse people can only be described with coarse words!! And God, we know the PNC is coarse!!
Then, of course, the citizens of neighbouring Suriname, on our eastern border, followed suit by dumping Bouterse, who’d been in power – or behind those in power – ever since he helped overthrow the Government in 1980. “Coup of the Sergeants” it was called for eponymic reasons – even though Bouterse didn’t remain a sergeant for long. He promoted himself several times, until he was simply called “The Commander”. We can appreciate this moniker when he removed one President and his government via a simple telephone call. “The telephone coup” it was called!! But, at least this time around, he didn’t do a “Granger” and try to strong-arm his way back into power!! In the end, even a sergeant had more patriotism than a general!!
And we now move over to the la-la land we call “Trinidad,” with its appendage Tobago, that has a permanent grouse about being “neglected”. Never mind that, proportionately, population wise, they receive the biggest allocation of all the other 39 constituencies in Trinidad. Trinidad voted on Monday – and by Monday night at 11pm they had a result!! Imagine that…results in five HOURS, rather than the five MONTHS it took for us!!
Keith Rowley, the leader of the PNM, declared himself the winner of the elections by coming out ahead in 22 of the 41 constituencies. They never had a problem with math, and had always accepted that 21 was the majority of 41!! Kamla Persad-Bissessar, head of the Opposition UNC (and “Kamla” to one and all) has protested the decision in what they call 3 “marginal” seats, and asked for a recount. But don’t expect anything like the nasty confrontation and polarisation that was created here by the PNC. Nah! Their Elections and Boundaries Commission (EBC) will resolve that issue within two days at most!! And the two sides will get on with respectively forming their Government and Opposition, and getting on with dealing with their country’s problems.
After all, they had Eric Williams who, in 1961, said the “fighting would now move from the streets into the Parliament”.
But here, we had Burnham, who connived to violently overthrow the PPP the same year!!

…in the PNC
Looks like we’re in for a long and nasty internecine war between factions in the PNC – to determine who’ll lead the fight against the PPP Administration. There’s even one “Wild Man” from New York who’s talking about launching a new party. He obviously doesn’t think Granger would step down – gracefully or otherwise – or that his opponents within the party would be able to dislodge him.
Granger finally showed up at Congress Place to sit with the PNC’s Central Executive Committee. But none of them had the guts to say what was on their minds: that it was time for the 75-year-old geriatric to retire into the sunset. But his opponents are starting to show their hand.
One of them stepped out of the shadows to reveal she was the one who’d convinced him to enter the run for leadership. She, more pertinently, revealed she had concerns early in the day about Granger’s leadership – or lack thereof – and brought these concerns to the attention of not only other members of the party, but Granger himself.
Granger’s days are numbered!!

…to President Ali’s energy
If one thing stands out in the week-long Ali Administration, it is the contrast in the energy level between them and the just departed Granger regime.
Proving Guyana’s no country for old leaders.